Boilies and pellets

[Troydog]

In Hereford we are blessed with two excellent fishing tackle shops that, between them, can supply just about anything that the coarse fisher could want. There are shelves and shelves of boilies and pellets, with many exotic flavours and colours to choose from. These baits also claim to be highly nutritious.
My question is: if these baits are being widely used, both before, during and after sessions on a stillwater, is an angler who uses just bread, maggots or corn, for example, at a serious disadvantage? I mean do tench become so preoccupied with these modern baits that you really need to join the boilie blitz to compete?

[Aitch]

Quite the opposite I've found... my club water see's so many boilies that baits like prawns and bread are taken readily as the fish eye small round uniform balls with suspicion... oh the carp boys still use them and fish still fall to them as they are seen as a food source, but they have spent so long feeding on boilies, they eye prawns, corn, bread, worms, etc as something different

[GameKeeper]

On my club lake I have found sweetcorn float fished near the pads is the favourite method resulting in nice catches of tench in the 3lb bracket.I fish from dawn and the action is usually over by 10am.I often use flavoured corn if the bites dry up.

[JAA]

Have never used either and catch a reasonable number of fish :-)

[Troydog]

Thank you Aitch, a very encouraging reply. My worms are free and so is the bread crumb. Corn costs just 39p a can in the supermarket, so I scoot past all those expensive looking plastic packs on the shelf of the tackle shops…..

[Ian.R.McDonald]

I would expect the majority of the cost of boilies nowadays is in the flashy packaging and extensive marketing and promotion.

I think the fish get more advantage from the feeding of natural bait

I have watched carp in the margins reacting poorly to boilies- pecs out and very cautious movement around them. Natural particles are cheaper and work much better for me

[Aitch]

I would expect the majority of the cost of boilies nowadays is in the flashy packaging and extensive marketing and promotion.

I think the fish get more advantage from the feeding of natural bait

I have watched carp in the margins reacting poorly to boilies- pecs out and very cautious movement around them. Natural particles are cheaper and work much better for me

Its actually the pre-digested fishmeal, flavourings and proteins that are the main costs... bulking agents are still reasonably cheap...

[Homer Simpson]

Corn costs just 39p a can in the supermarket,

89p a kilo for frozen in lidl.
I split a bag in half (used bread bags) and that's two sessions loose feed and bait.
Plus third of a sliced loaf, hook bait only.
Red worms from the compost heap/wormery.
Lobs found during garden activities stored in damp moss.

The remains at the end of a session, former left on the bank for the ducks and the latter two returned to where I got them.

Who needs anything fancier?

[Troydog]

Thank you gentlemen. I’m with you on cost Homer Simpson. I only prefer cans of corn because I have experienced frozen corn floating on occasion. It’s also the different fisheries that make such a difference to catches. I know one tench pool where blanks are more common than not. Not many miles down the road, another pool is a fish a chuck, no matter what bait you use.
Soon be back on the river anyway!

[Old Wulf]

Thank you gentlemen. I’m with you on cost Homer Simpson. I only prefer cans of corn because I have experienced frozen corn floating on occasion. It’s also the different fisheries that make such a difference to catches. I know one tench pool where blanks are more common than not. Not many miles down the road, another pool is a fish a chuck, no matter what bait you use.
Soon be back on the river anyway!

I am sure that it is choice of fishery that makes the real difference. Most baits that are properly applied will give results. The fishery chosen will determine the magnitude of success in either quantity caught or size/quality.